Animal Control Incinerator Fails as Shelter Handles 37 Calls, Adopts Out 15

Montgomery County Board Development & Personnel Committee Meeting | July 6, 2026

Article Summary: Animal Control Warden Tricia Papin told the Montgomery County Board Development & Personnel Committee on Monday, July 6, 2026, that her department responded to 37 calls in June and adopted out 15 animals in the first week of July, and that the department’s incinerator is inoperable — a problem she will take to the Finance & Budget Committee for replacement options.

Animal Control Key Points:

• Papin reported 37 calls in June and 15 animals adopted out in the first week of July.
• The department’s incinerator is inoperable; Animal Control will consult the Finance & Budget Committee on replacement options.
• The department’s June inventory shows 11 dogs, two puppies, three cats and 11 kittens on site.
• A further 64 animals are in foster care — 16 dogs and puppies, and 48 cats and kittens.

MONTGOMERY COUNTY — Fifteen animals found homes in the first week of July. Sixty-four more are living in other people’s houses because there is not room. And the machine the county uses for the animals that do not make it has stopped working.

Animal Control Warden Tricia Papin delivered that picture to the Montgomery County Board Development & Personnel Committee on Monday, July 6, 2026.

Papin reported her department responded to 37 calls in June and adopted out 15 animals the first week of July, according to the minutes. The incinerator is inoperable, and Animal Control will consult with the Finance & Budget Committee for replacement options.

The minutes say nothing about what the 37 calls involved, how long the incinerator has been down, what the department is doing in the meantime, or what a replacement might cost. Papin’s own account of the failure is not recorded.

What the Inventory Shows

The department’s June 2026 inventory is among the committee’s handouts, and it is a spare one-page document that counts animals by species, age and whether they have been sterilized.

On site in June: 11 dogs — three intact males, two intact females, two sterile males and four sterile females. Two puppies, both sterile males. Three cats — one intact female, one sterile female, one sterile male. And 11 kittens, three male and eight female.

In foster care: 16 dogs and puppies, five male and 11 female. And 48 cats and kittens, 22 male and 26 female.

The foster numbers dwarf the shelter numbers. Nearly three times as many cats and kittens are in foster homes as there are animals of every kind at the facility. The inventory offers no explanation and the minutes do not discuss it.

The inventory does not state a date within June, does not distinguish intake from population, and does not record outcomes. It is a snapshot with no denominator.

Where It Goes

The incinerator question does not stay with this committee. Papin said Animal Control will consult the Finance & Budget Committee on replacement options, which is the body that handles requests against the county’s coal fund.

The Development & Personnel Committee took no action on the report; the item was titled “Update/Approval” and drew no motion. Any purchase would be a recommendation from committee to the full County Board, and no money moves until the full board acts.